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Seahawks, Packers kick off NFL season

READY FOR KICK OFF: "Kickoff Weekend" will also feature a Monday Night doubleheader with the Detroit Lions hosting the New York Giants and the San Diego Chargers traveling to Arizona to face the Cardinals. Photo: Associated Press

(Reuters) – The Seattle Seahawks open the defense of their Super Bowl crown and kick off the 2014-15 season at home against the Green Bay Packers, the National Football League (NFL) announced on Wednesday.

The Sept. 4 league opener will mark the Packers’ first visit back to CenturyLink Field since the infamous ‘Fail Mary’ game in 2012 when replacement officials bungled a touchdown call in the endzone that led to an unlikely Seattle win.

“Kickoff Weekend” will also feature a Monday Night doubleheader with the Detroit Lions hosting the New York Giants and the San Diego Chargers traveling to Arizona to face the Cardinals.

The NFL regular season will feature 256 games spread across 17 weeks followed by the playoffs concluding with the Super Bowl on Feb. 1 at University of Phoenix Stadium.

The Seahawks will also be part of the NFL Thanksgiving Day festivities on Nov. 27 when they take on San Francisco.

Other Thanksgiving Day matchups will see the Chicago Bears in Detroit while the Philadelphia Eagles will land in Dallas to challenge the Cowboys.

The NFL had already announced that three regular season games will be played at London’s Wembley Stadium — Oakland kicking off the International Series against Miami (Sept. 28), followed by Atlanta against Detroit (Oct. 26) and Jacksonville facing Dallas (Nov. 9).